By Ashutosh Vinay
Published on: January 15, 2024 at 20:56 IST
In the legal field, The Code of Civil Procedure is considered as a foundation for the principles of any civil suit or proceeding. With over 158 sections and 51 Orders, there is one section that comes out very important when it comes to revision of proceedings or suits. It is the Section 115 which talks about the revision petition.
Section 115 of CPC serves as an access to help the people involved in a lawsuit if they are dissatisfied with decisions of subordinate Courts. It opens a gateway to a higher court, where the aggrieved party can look for a revaluation of the case, aiming for a fair and just resolution.
In this article we will be exploring the detail surrounding revisions petition under THE CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE, 1976.
Revision Petition Under CPC
The Section 115.of CPC states about Revision petition as 1[(1)] The High Court may call for the record of any case which has been decided by any Court subordinate to such High Court and in which no appeal lies thereto, and if such subordinate Court appears
(a) to have exercised a jurisdiction not vested in it by law, or
(b) to have failed to exercise a jurisdiction so vested, or
(c) to have acted in the exercise of its jurisdiction illegally or with material irregularity,
the High Court may make such order in the case as it thinks fit:
2[Provided that the High Court shall not, under this section, vary or reverse any order made, or any order deciding an issue, in the course of a suit or other proceeding, except where the order, if it had been made in favour of the party applying for revision would have finally disposed of the suit or other proceedings.]
3[(2) The High Court shall not, under this section, vary or reverse any decree or order against which an appeal lies either to the High Court or to any Court subordinate thereto.
4[(3) A revision shall not operate as a stay of suit or other proceeding before the Court except where such suit or other proceeding is stayed by the High Court.]
This section states the authority of the high court to take charge in some suits of subordinate courts, if there is a matter of clear error or injustice.
Suppose you are playing cricket and the umpire makes a biased or unfair decision Section 115 basically allows you to ask higher authorities to review the decision made by the referee to see if it was really in the wrong.
Section 115 of the Civil Procedure Code, 1908, leads and controls the Revisional legal provision of High Courts in civil matters. The term “case decided” was formerly defined in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1976; However, an explanation was added after the Amendment of 1976 to clear up that the “case which decided” includes any order or formal statement about something in an issue during a lawsuit or legal suit. Regarding the revision petition only the high court has the power to issue a stay order in respect to the suit.
Section 115 [6] of The Code of Civil Procedure, 1976; lays down the conditions for Revision
A revision Petition shall be admitted when:
- When a subordinate Court has either exercised a jurisdiction not authorized by law. or,
- Additionally, if the subordinate court has acted illegally or with material irregularity in the exercise of its jurisdiction, the affected party may seek relief by approaching a higher Court.
Exceptions to the Revision Petition as per Section 115
- The High Court has optional power in exercising a revisional legal control, but certain exceptions exist. For instance, the High Court cannot exercise revisional control in the jurisdiction. if the order, if made in favour of the party applying for the revision, would have already finally disposed the case.
- Also, the High Court cannot exercise revisional jurisdiction over any order or legal statement that can be appealed to the High Court or any Subordinate Court.
Essentials for admitting Revision Petition
The filing of a revision petition under section 115 on one hand provides relief to an aggrieved party and on the other also has some necessity without which it won’t be recognized by the High Court. As revision petition is considered as a crucial provision for providing relief there are several factors that contribute to its necessity of filing the petition.
These factors are:
- Jurisdictional Error
Jurisdictional error is one of the major reasons that result in filing of a revision petition. If the lower court didn’t have the competent jurisdiction or exceeded its own authority, failed to exercise the necessary authority. A revision petition can be filed to fix these errors.
- Legal irregularities
Misapplication or misinterpretation of the law, can also be a reason to file a revision petition. If the lower court’s decision was based on a wrong interpretation of legal principles, the revision petition provides an avenue for correction.
- Substantial Question of Law
Section 115 allows the aggrieved party to file a revision petition only on the basis of a question of law. When a legal issue of importance comes up, and its correct explanation is extremely important for the case, filing an revision petition becomes necessary to look for the High Court’s.
Grounds for Rejection of Revision Petition
The revision petition can be rejected by the High Court under some circumstances. The circumstances are mentioned as:
- If There Is No Jurisdictional Error
The High Court can dismiss or reject the revision petition if after the notice or plea, the Court finds out that the court that previously decided the suit had the competent jurisdiction for that specific subject matter or the question of law, if there was no irregularity in the decision of the lower court, it can reject the revision petition.
In Baldev Singh vs. Manohar Singh (2006) the Supreme Court stated that this case reiterates the principle that Section 115 is not a provision for a regular second appeal. The High Court can interfere only if there is a jurisdictional error or a substantial question of law. The court clarified that the revisional power under Section 115 should not be exercised as an appellate power.
- If There Was A Disagreement With subordinate Court
If the aggrieved party had a disagreement with the lower court, it cannot be considered as a ground for filing a revision petition for the suit. If the revision petition is also seen as a way to misuse the judicial body for filing a second appeal purely due to a dissatisfaction, the revision petition will be rejected by the court.
In Raja Soap Factory vs. S.P. Shantharaj 2005 the Supreme Court reiterated that the revisional jurisdiction should be exercised only in exceptional cases where there is a patent illegality or manifest injustice. It emphasized that the revisional power should not be used as a cloak for a regular second appeal.
- Due To Technical Difficulties
The court may reject the petition if it is not properly drafted or lacks essential facts or details or is not up to the requirements set by the High Court.
- There Was No Substantial Question of Law
Under Section 115 an aggrieved party can only file a revision petition if there is a substantial question of law. If the petition fails to have a substantial question of law or legal issue, The High Court may reject the petition.
In Surya Dev Rai vs. Ram Chander Rai (2003) the Supreme Court clarified the scope of Section 115 CPC, and held that the High Court’s revisional jurisdiction is limited to correcting jurisdictional errors and errors of law. The court stated that only a little wrong decision on facts or law does not automatically call for Section 115; there must be a valid issue or a big question of law.
Conclusion
In the end, Section 115 is a detailed and thoughtful judicial concept, where it gives the high Court revisional powers under its jurisdiction, and it is used to fix the jurisdictional errors, a question of law in the decisions of subordinate court. Revision petition under section 115 comes up from the high court to safeguard the interest of the parties.
The importance of Section 115 is in its ability to maintain a balance between allowing for legal review when wanted and preventing its exploiting as for challenging decisions of lower courts. As the legal field continues to change, the ways of thinking described in these cases serve as guideposts, securing and making sure of that the need for filing a revision petition comes from the pursuit of fairness, equity, and the saving of the rule of law in the Indian judicial system.